Complicated
by Ro-RoWeasley
Summary: Hannah's reaction to the events of Tom's birthday party and what happened next. Hannah's POV. Necessary to read 'Beginnings' first as this is about my OCs and is a parallel to Chapter 9. I couldn't disrupt the flow of Jess's POV as it wouldn't fit so I've posted this separate.


**_[A/N: Avril Lavigne being Hannah's favourite singer (and a favourite of mine a few years back!) I was listening to some songs to help me get into Hannah's head to help me figure out her reaction after Tom's disastrous party to help me write Chapter 10. The song 'Complicated' seemed to fit the scenario pretty well and this one-shot(ish) appeared on my laptop screen! Necessary to read 'Beginnings' first as this is about my OCs and is set between Chapters 8 & 10. I couldn't disrupt the flow of Jess's POV as she's telling Becker the story so I've posted this separate; missing chapter really._**

**_And I wanted her thoughts to come across a little fragmented as she's a little peeved and upset, like flashes in quick succession so if it doesn't read quite right, bear with.]_**

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**Complicated**

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Anger. Hate. Frustration. Jealousy. Bitterness. Disappointment.

Emotions whirled around Hannah Bails' head as she tossed and turned in her lilac double bed, unable to sleep. Finally, she buried her face in her pillow and cried out in desperation hoping that would stop it all.

She hated him. Tom. The name rang with venom in her head.  
She hated herself for what he had done to her; disappointed that she hadn't prevented the incident.

How could he do such a thing to her? To both of them?  
How could she have let him?

How dare he!

He'd promised he'd protect her, her younger cousin, with his life. Yet once around his new best mates and plenty of beer he'd let his guard down. Shown off. Taken advantage of her in the spur of the moment. She should have known.

And poor Jess. All alone in a cell. Because of her.  
Because of him.

Once she'd received the call around half past ten last night, adrenaline had kicked in, overriding the effects of alcohol in her system, sobering her up then and there. Her dad had been there instantly to pick her up and race them to the station.

As soon as they arrived they'd had to give their names and relation to Jess before being allowed to see her, even though the station had called her parents to notify! Hannah was asked to verify the names of the three boys. But she wasn't interested in Tom or the others. She'd wanted to see Jess. To comfort her. To tell her she was safe and how sorry she was.

They were led straight to Jess's cell down the corridor. She was sat up against the far wall, her knees drawn up to her chest, shoes thrown carelessly across the floor, tears pouring silently down her cheeks. Her head snapped up at the sound of the newcomers but when she caught Hannah's eyes she looked away and began sobbing.

Hannah ran to her, threw her arms around her, and cradled her.

"Shh, shh, it's okay. Jess I'm so sorry." She whispered, stroking her hair soothingly.

Jess didn't speak. Just sat in her arms and cried till she couldn't cry any longer. She was in shock; mortified at the circumstances.

Hannah had to be dragged out of the room to allow her dad sometime to speak to her. Through the slit of a window, Hannah could see Jess staring blankly past her dad's face before accepting his embrace.

"Where's her bag?" Hannah suddenly thought, whipping around to the security guard who'd escorted her from the room. "She had a navy clutch bag."

"There was no bag." He replied simply.

"Take me to Tom! Now! I'm gonna _kill_ him!" she demanded, angry tears streaming down her face. He was a fucking _idiot!_

"I'm afraid I can't do that Miss. We allowed you to see Miss Parker as she is family. But you and your father must first be informed of the situation, and what appropriate action shall be taken."

"Action? You mean, as in punishment?" It was a stupid question, but she was desperately trying to work it all out in her head.

"Miss Parker and Misters Dale, Ryley and Lutkin will all be punished accordingly."

Hannah couldn't stand his calm composure. "But Jess did nothing wrong!" she protested shrilly.

Mark Bails chose that moment to exit the cell, finding his daughter shouting at the security guard. "Hey, what's going on?" he asked, putting an arm around her shoulders.

"Daddy, they're going to punish Jess!"

He nodded but Hannah didn't miss the brief panicked look that crossed his face.

"If you two would like to follow me please, you'll be informed of the night's happenings." The guard said politely.

They were led into a small interview room and made to sit in two seats on one side of the single table. The security guard left but they were soon joined by a bald man in police uniform and a middle-aged woman in a smart work outfit who sat opposite Hannah and her dad.

It then occurred to Hannah that her dad hadn't actually told her what had happened, so she'd imagined the worst possible scenarios. Assault. Rape. Attempted murder, even. She hadn't even thought to ask Jess or even her dad on the way there.

However, it appeared her dad was none the wiser as he asked pleadingly, "What on earth happened?"

The woman spoke first. "I'm Detective Inspector Jones and this is my colleague PC Ryley."

"Ryley?" Hannah asked, then realisation dawned, "Dave Ryley, Tom's uncle. Shit." She sighed, running a hand through her hair.

DI Jones continued. "Mr Bails, your second-cousin-in-law or surrogate daughter, as it were, and three males were arrested an hour ago on suspicion of breaking and entering and trespassing at the Cambridge University Museum of Zoology."

"What the hell were they doing _there_?" her dad exploded before rounding on her, "Hannah how could you be so irresponsible!"

That stung. "I saw them together, he took her outside for fresh air. It was a kind gesture, I thought they'd be ten minutes! How was I to know he'd be so irresponsible? This is _his _fault, _not_ mine!"

This time PC Ryley spoke. "Hannah, do you think Tom is the kind of person to do such a thing? And what about Jess?"

"Zoology is his department. He's told both me and Jess about the specimens kept in there. He couldn't have taken her into the insect section though; he'd never be that stupid, or mean. She's allergic to insect bites and they have live ants and spiders in there…" she trailed off. She was thinking aloud and not actually answering the question.

"She was medically checked out when she came in but there was nothing to suggest she'd come into contact with insects."

"Then he's bloody lucky. Especially as she didn't have her bag with her. How could he have been so _stupid_? She had her epi pen in there!"

"So this bag?" DI Jones prompted.

"Navy River Island clutch bag, must be back at Tom's flat. Has her phone in too."

"Back to my previous question. Do you think Tom or Jess are the people to commit such an offense?" asked PC Ryley.

"Jess definitely not. She was intoxicated she wouldn't have known what she was doing. But Tom… he's more than capable of handling his liquor, but mix too much beer and his new best mates and I suppose you have a lethal concoction."

"So he's never seemed the type to take advantage of a vulnerable underage girl?" DI urged.

Hannah thought for a moment. She didn't want to ask but she needed to know. She needed to actually make sure nothing had happened, to settle her racing mind. She took a deep breath and proceeded. "You said she was medically checked out when she was brought in, yeah? So there was no evidence of sexual contact? Though I'd imagine if there were you'd have brought it up straight away?"

Her dad beside her suddenly sat up, alert. "What?"

Hannah winced. "Sorry dad but I had to ask. It'll mean a slightly less-harsh punishment from me." She replied through gritted teeth.

"Miss Bails, there was no such evidence on Miss Parker's body. You think Mr Ryley would be the type to do such a thing?"

"No!" she said defensively. "They're both really close friends. We all are. He'd never do anything to hurt her… I was more worried about the other two. How did they actually get into the building?"

"That's what I was going to bring up next." Tom's uncle said. "It appears the CCTV cameras and alarm systems were all disabled from the outside, allowing them entry undetected. However the hacker failed to take into account the cameras down the street which caught their every move."

"Jess." She said with a resigned sigh. Of course it would have been her, the computer genius. But she hadn't been in her right mind, she would never do such a thing off her own back. Would she? Had Jess indeed known what she was doing? Was Jess a possible mischievous drunk? But surely if she failed to think about other cameras… No. That was so unlike her. Jess hadn't been in her right mind, hadn't been able to control her actions.

"We understand she does Computer Science at the University?" DI Jones urged. "At fifteen, she is certainly gifted."

Hannah nodded. Her dad however, was struggling to keep up. "So, Jess is responsible for the break-in? And they're all accused of trespassing?"

DI Jones looked from Mark to Hannah with an amused expression. "I must say Miss Bails, you are dealing with this situation very calmly."

_Whoa seriously? You're gonna go this way with me now?_

"What, you think I have something to do with it? I'm training to be a lawyer and therefore deal with all sorts of issues. It's called being professional."

For the sake of her own professionalism, or to avoid an argument, DI Jones ignored her. Hannah smirked.

"So what's going to happen now? I know that breaking and entering and trespassing are serious offences." She asked, trying to disguise the worried tone creeping into her voice.

"An agreement has been reached. Jess is underage so won't be charged. The excessive amount of alcohol in her system also supports her case, as does her spotless record. For Thomas, Michael and Edward however, the best we can hope for is suspension which shall be recommended to their departments. The worst is two years, minimum."

Hannah was not happy with that. Jess maybe underage but she'd never get away unscathed regardless of the circumstances. Something was up, but she didn't draw attention to it.

"Jail?" Dad asked.

"Yes dad, breaking and entering is a serious crime. I'm sure I've bored you to death about it before back at sixth form."

DI Jones took over, "But as PC Ryley said, it was Miss Parker who was actually responsible for the breaking and entering, and she won't be charged. So there is a chance that they will all leave without punishment. Any disciplinary action taken by the University however – and senior staff will be informed as it was University property – is not the concern of the Police."

Hannah was both relieved and angry. Relieved that Jess would get away without a criminal record. Even relieved that neither Tom nor his friends would be going to jail, she'd never wish that upon any of her friends. But she was also angry at the entire situation. If Jess hadn't gone to the party, none of this would've happened.

Underneath, it was all her fault.

"Can I see Tom now please?" Hannah asked.

"And I'd like to see Jess again if it's okay?"

Hannah looked round to see her dad had his head in his hands. He looked up slowly at her, almost hysterical. "What's your mum going to say? What's _Jess's _mum going to say?"

"We need to keep all four in cells for the night as regulation. You may collect her at 9am tomorrow. Mr Bails, we have something further to discuss with you before you leave."

But Hannah was out the door like a whippet, before they could go into detail. She sprinted quickly back to the security guard and demanded to see Tom. Once the door was opened, she let loose at him.

"What the _hell_ were you thinking? She's fifteen! You should have known better than to take advantage of her in that state, especially as it was her first time drunk. Yeah, maybe that was my fault and I personally take responsibility for that, but you still should have taken better care of her. How _dare_ you break your word! I thought you'd sit with her outside the door for ten minutes, not run around the block and break into a building at this time of night!"

Throughout her hysterical rant, Tom hadn't moved from his position on the bench, head in his hands. Now, he brought his face up to look at her. Before she knew what she was doing, she'd moved forward and brought her hand up to meet his cheek with a sickening smack. Like a man, he took it without a cry.

"You stay away from her! I know you had no bad intentions, I made sure of that; asked the awkward questions. But you're a different person around those two idiots you call your friends than I've ever seen in the three years I've known you! I've seen the real you, why fake being someone you aren't to get popularity, you're such an idiot god dammit! Urghh!" she cried in frustration.

Tom took this as his cue to speak. "Han, I'm sorry. It was meant to be a brief walk up the street to cool her down but then Mike and Ed appeared out of nowhere and asked if we were heading up the museum way. Then Jess wanted to go and they egged me on. How was I supposed to know she'd hack the system to get us inside!"

"They 'egged you on'?! You're pathetic! I thought you cared about her!"

"I do."

"Then why the _hell_ would you put her in such danger? She was drunk out of her mind, she had no idea what she was doing!"

Hannah took great pleasure in seeing the pain in his eyes after that. Well good, he deserved it.

"Did you kiss her?" she asked bluntly.

A flash of guilt whipped across his face, but then he protested. "I thought you said-" he began but she cut him off.

"I study Law, Tom. Kissing is not classed as sexual contact! When I asked if there was any evidence they said no, but that didn't include any DNA traces around her mouth! Fucking hell Tom, what were you _thinking?! _What drove you?

"You know what? I don't want to know. This is the final straw. You stay away from both of us. Yes both of us," she yelled when he began to protest. "Until you pull yourself together and decide what you want. You can't be all sweet and caring Tom with me and Jess one minute, then irresponsible and _cruel _Tom with your mates. Just stay away from us." She finished, her voice finally breaking.

And with that, she'd exited the cell.

Back in her bedroom - which felt like a cell of its own under the circumstances - Hannah burst into tears at the thought of losing her friendship with Tom. She really didn't want to; it had broken her heart saying those words to him at the station. She'd wanted to take them back as soon as she'd said them. But she'd needed to exert her authority and control, for Jess's sake. Jess was family, she came first.

Hannah sat up in her bed and leaned across to her bedside table which held a small set of speakers with her iPod attached. She quickly put her favourite singer on shuffle, adjusting the volume so it wouldn't wake her parents below her, then hugged her knees to her chest and listened to the melody as she chewed over thoughts in her restless head.

…_You're tryin' to be cool, you look like a fool to me…_

As her ears focused on the lyrics, she slid slowly back under the covers, tears beginning to slide down her cheeks again._  
_

…_I see the way you're acting like somebody else, gets me frustrated…_

…_Why do you have to go and make things so complicated?..._

They'd been best friends since they'd met after she'd moved to Cherry Hinton three years ago. He was her first boy best friend. He understood her, had a laugh with her, knew just how to cheer her up on a bad day.

Now it was seemingly all down the drain. And this song summed up their situation perfectly. She smiled to herself at the thought of an Avril Lavigne track meaning so much more than ever before.

But it also left a sinking feeling in her stomach. It was exactly what their situation, their whole relationship had suddenly become.

Complicated.

**. . .  
The End**

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_**[A/N: I've used Complicated by Avril Lavigne for Hannah's situation here, but my personal song for Hannah and Tom's relationship is Distance by Christina Perri. I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THESE SONGS!]**_


End file.
